Ruffling attachment for sewing-machines



Model.)

B. SEITZ.

RUFFLING ATTAGHMENT FOR SEWING MAGHINES.

No. 413,096. Patented Oct. 15, 1889.

UNITED STATES PATENT Enron.

EDWARD SEITZ, OF PEORIA, ILLINOIS.

RUFFLING ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING-MACHINES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 418,096, dated October 15, 18519.

Application filed October 11, 1888. Serial No. 287,820. (Modeh) To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD SEITZ, of Peeria, in the county of Peoria. and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rufflers for Sewing-Machines; and I do hereby declare that the fol lowing is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention,which will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form part of this specification.

My invention relates to an improvement in sewing-machine attachments, and more particularly to an improved ruftler.

The object of the invention is to produce a ruffier exceedingly cheap in first cost, simple, quick, effective, and reliable in action, and which is composed of a minimum number of exceedingly strong and durable parts.

A further object is to provide improved means for actuating the rui'fling-blade,whereby the backward throw of the same can be regulated to produce a certain quantity of ruffled goods to the yard or other standard unit of plain goods, the regulating means being provided with a scale located upon the operatingdever to indicate the point to which the regulating device shall be adjusted to produce the desired quantity of ruffled goods.

A fnrth or object is to so secure the ruffiingblade to a pivoted swinging plate carrying and actuating the same that the blade is loosely secured to the plate and can be readily attached or detached from the same, or if broken or injured can be replaced by a perfeet blade.

A further object is to provide an improved separator-blade plate removably attached to the base-plate upon one side of the same and extending beneath the base-plate, and provided with the separatonblade at its opposite end upon the opposite side of the base-plate, and also with a guide to hold and straighten the strip operated upon by the ruffier-blade; and a further object is to provide a springplate secured to the base-plate above the heel of the same and extending over and bearing down upon the upper face of the rattling-blade to hold the same down to engage the goods,

and to provide this blade with an improved guide, as hereinafter set forth.

These objects are accomplished by, and my invention consists in, certain novel features of construction and combinations of parts more fully described hereinafter, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a top plan view of the device, showing the operating lever lowered. Fig. 2 is a side elevation showing the scale and the milled knob or thumb-piece operating the device for regulating the throw of the blade. Fig. 3 is a view from the opposite side, showing the blade at the limit of its forward move ment and'the regulating device adjusted to operate the blade to producea large quantity of ruffled goods to the yard of plain goods. Fig. t is a similar view showing the blade at the limit of its backward movement and the regulating device adjusted to produce a smaller quantity of ruffled goods. Fig. 5 isa detail perspective view of the separator-blade plate and the blade. Fig. 6 is a detail View of the ruffler'blade-actuating plate, the blade-v holder projecting from the same, the ruiflerblade in position to have its head inserted in the holder, and the cap in position to close the open end of the holder. Fig. 7 is a detail view of a diiferent construction of de tachable interchangeable ruffling blade, wherein the metal of the blade is looped or rolled at one end to form a head. Fig. 8 is a detail view of a modified form of indicating device, showing a fixed scale and movable finger instead of a rotating plate and scale and a fixed point.

In the drawings, the reference-letter ct indicates the base'plate, provided with an upwardly-extending vertical standard b and with any suitable means whereby the device can be secured in position .upon the sewingmachine. That portion of the base-plate adapted to be located beneath the needle of the machine is provided with a downwardlyextending heel-c, having a rearwardly and downwardly beveled front edge, against which the cloth is forced when the rufliing blade is moved forward, and which assistsin forming the tuck. An aperture for the needle extends down through said heel as usual.

ICC)

The operating-lever d is pivoted near one end to one side of the standard I), and is adapted to be loosely and removably connected at its opposite end to the needle-bar of a machine in any approved manner, so that the lever will be vertically operated as the needle-bar reciproeates. At its front end the operating-lever is extended forwardly a short distance from its pivotal point to form an arm or projecting lug 6. Upon the opposite side of its pivotal point the lever is pro vided with a stud or spindle extending transversely through and mounted to turn in the same and having a cam f rigidly secured to one end and located upon the side of the lever adjacent to the standard, and upon the opposite or outer face of the lever the spin dle is provided with a milled head or thumbpiece 9, whereby the spindle and its attachments can be rotated. Between the milled head 9 and the outer face of thelever a faceplate rigidly secured to the lever or rotating scale-plate h is rigidly mounted to turn with the spindle.

The cam f is provided with an eccentric or spiral periphery, as shown, and for the purpose hereinafter set forth, and the face-plate h is provided with a scale upon its outer face,

- as hereinafter set forth.

A ruffler-blade-actuating plate t is pivoted at its upper portion upon the opposite side of the standard I; from the operating-lever and preferably having its pivotal point in the same horizontal plane as the pivotal point ofthe operating-lever. Upon each side of and below the pivotal point of the plate 71 the same is provided with lugs j j, extending from the same over the upper edge of the standard respectively, below the arm e and the periphery of the cam f, so that as the operating-lever is vertically operated the arm e will strike one lug j and throw the lower part of the actuating-blade plate forward, and then as the lever is forced down the periphery of the cam will engage the opposite lugj and throw the actuating-plate in the opposite direction. As shown, the blade actuating or v carrying plate extends downwardly nearly or quite to the bottom of the standard, and is provided with a tube or hollow socket 7e, projecting outwardly at right angles from the plate and open at its outer end, and provided with a longitudinal slot Z, extending its length and of a suitable width, for the purpose hereinafter set forth. This tube constitutes the ruffler-blade holder, and ruffler-blades t", to be used with the same, are provided at their upper ends with a head m to fit snugly and turn in the tube, with the blade 2" extending through the slot in the same. The head can either be cast or formed of a separate piece upon the end of the blade, or the metal composing the blade can be bent at the end of the same into a cylindrical head, as shown in Fig. 7. A cap 'n fits upon the end of the tube to hold the ruffier-blade in the same, and the cap and tube can be provided with screwthreads, or other means can be provided for screwing the cap to the tube. It will be readily seen that as the lower end of the blade actuating or carrying plate is swung back and forth the blade-holder moves with it, and thus reciprocates the blade, the same extending through the slot in the tube and working up and down in the same. The great advantages of the construction are ob vio us. For instance, when the teeth of a blade become injured or the blade becomes imperfect in any way the same can be removed and a new blade put in, or the blades can be manufactured and sold separate from the machine.

A spring-plate 0 is secured to the base-plate above the heel and extends forwardly over the ruffler-blade, and its front edge is formed to yieldingly bear down upon the upper face of the ruflling-blade, and thus yieldingly hold the same in engagement with the goods The plate is slotted, as shown, to give more spring and elasticity and to form the transverse guiding-slot a for use with piping. This slot extends transversely and partiallyacross the plate at or about the point where its free end starts to curve downwardly to engage the rufflerblade, and the outer end of the slot extends through the outer edge of the plate, as shown, and is normally closed by a springtongue 6', formed integral with the plate and extending from one edge of the slot transversely across the open end of the same, with its free end yieldingly bearing against the plate on the opposite side of the slot. Thus it will be seen that when the piping is to be used it is slipped into the slot through its open end and between the edges of the plate and tongue. The tongue holds the piping in the slot during the operation and makes it self-guiding and very convenient for fast work.

19 indicates the separator-blade plate, which is preferably composed of a single piece of metal, and is removably secured to the upper face of the base-plate upon the right-hand side of the standard I), and from thence extends laterally from the same a suitable distance, and then doubles upon itself and extends back beneath the base-plate to the opposite side of the same, where the separatorblade (1 is secured, and extends at right angles from the same beneath the rufiiing-blade in the usual manner.

Just to the rear of the separator-blade the separatonblade plate is provided with two parallel slots 0" 1', located a short distance apart and extending from the outer end of the plate inwardlya suitable distance beyond the inner side of the separator-blade, and the finger or strip 5 left between the two slots is then slightly bent upwardly at its point of connection to the said plate, thus forming a guide and tightener for the strip of goods being ruflied, the same passing transversely across the separator plate down through one slot beneath the finger s and up through the other slot to and along the upper face of the separator-blade, the inner ends of the slots and finger limiting the inward movement of the strip of cloth and holding the same in position, while the friction between the cloth and finger as it is drawn through the slots by the ruffler-blade draws the same taut.

The separator-blade plate is reinovably secured to the base-plate by means of a lug or screw it, provided with a head extending above the face of the base upon the right hand of the standard and extending up through a slot u in the separator-blade plate. This slot at one end is just large enough to admit the lug below the head and thus secure it upon the plate; but the remaining portion of the slot is large enough to admit the head of the lug passing through the same. It will thus be readily seen how the plate is attached to or detached from the base-plate.

It should be observed that the limit of the forward movement of the rufiiing-blade is always the same, as the arm e is fixed, but

- that the limit of rearward throw of the same can be changed atwillas the cam f is turned, so that the portion of its periphery engaging the lugj on that side is at a greater or less distance from its center, so that there will be a greater or less space between the lugj and the surface of the cam, as the length of movement of the operating-lever is always the same. Thus when the cam is adjusted so that its smallest portion engages the lug 3' there will be comparatively a large amount of ruffied goods produced to a certain length of plain goods, and as the cam is gradually turned, so that its periphery which engages the lug is farther and farther from the center, the backward throw of the blade is correspondingly lengthened and the amount of ruffled goods to a unit of plain goods decreased. In order to determine the exact point to which the cam should be turned for the device to produce a certain amount of ruffled goods to a unit of plain goods, the faceplate on the opposite side of the lever is provided with a graduated scale, in which one yard of plain goods is taken as the unit, and the plate is divided into spaces corresponding to certain portions of the periphery of the cam, and in each of such. spaces is marked the amount of ruflied goods which will be produced to the yard of plain goods when that part of the cam engages the lug j and the section is opposite a certain fixed finger or mark 1). Thus, if it is desired to produce twenty-five inches of ruiiied goods to the yard of plain goods, the spindle, and with it the cam and face-plate, are turned by the thumb-piece until that portion of the face-plate marked with 1 yd., 25, comes opposite the fixed point o. It is evident that the face-plate can be fixed, if desired, and the spindle upon which the cam is secured be provided with. a finger to operate over the face of said plate, as shown in Fig: 8. It is also evident that various changes and modifications might be made in the form and arrangement of the parts described without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention; hence I do not wish to limit myself ing upon the ruffier-blade and provided with a transverse guide-slot at one end extending through the edge of the plate, and a springtongue yieldingly extending from the plate transversely across the open end of the slot to normally close the same, substantially as described. 7

2. In a rnffier, a swinging plate having a tube or socket extending laterally therefrom provided with a longitudinal opening and normallyclosed at its outer end, in combination with a reciprocating blade extending through said opening and having its upper end jonrnaled in said tube or socket, sub stantially as described.

3. In a ruffier, the combination of a lever, a pivoted plate swung by the same, atube extending laterally from the plate and having a longitudinal slot, a ruffiing-blade extending loosely through said slot and having a head fitting loosely in said tube, and a screw-cap for the outer end of the tube, substantially as described 4:. In a ruffler, afranie and a ruffling-blade, in combination with a separator-blade and a plate carrying the same and provided with a slot to receive a headed stud on the frame, having a contracted portion smaller than the head of the stud, said plate extending beneath the frame and provided in the rear of the separator-blade with a pair of parallel slots separated by a finger bent upwardly at its point of connection with the plate, for the pur pose set forth.

5. A ruffier comprising the combination of a main frame, a rufflenblade, a plate to reciprocate the blade, an operating-lever to swing said plate, a rotary circular cam carried by the lever, having a continuous-contact periphery, a circular scale carried by the lever, each division of which corresponds to a certain portion of the periphery of the cam, and an indicator for the scale, the relative positions of the scale and indicator varying with the adjustment of the cam, for the purpose set forth.

6. In a ruffler, the combination of a frame, a ruffler-b1ade,a swinging plate reciprocating the blade, an operating-lever to swing the plate, a rotary spindle extending through the lever, a milled head on one end. of the spindle, and a circular cam on the opposite end of the spindle, having a continuous-contact periphery forming a gradually-increasing curve around the axis of the cam, substantially as described.

7. In a rulfier, the combination of a frame, a reciprocating ruffier-blade, a swingingplate carrying the blade, provided with lateral lugs on opposite sides of its pivotal point, an operating-lever having a stationary point on one side of its fulcrum to engage one of said lugs,

5 a rotary spindle extending through the lever on the opposite side of its fulcrum, a circular cam on one end of the spindle, having a consinuous-contact periphery adapted to engage the opposite lug of said plate, a face-plate 10 upon the opposite end of the spindle, having a scale, an indicator for the. scale, and a milled head on the scale end of the spindle, substantially as described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I affix my signature in presence of 15 two Witnesses.

EDWARD SEITZ. Witnesses:

A. R. DORsAY, I. B. SETLINK. 

